The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1887-01-27
THE COUNTY ATTORNEYsHtP.

Much comment has recently beef
created by correspondence with thu
Attorney General and alleged inter
views with Judge Francis, affecting
the status of the county district attor
ney.
It Is not to be denied that by a Ger
tain construction Of the law of 1888
San act to create the Office Of District
Attorney for the seuerM counties 81
Dakota Territory" it MAY be asserted
that it did not contemplate the elect
ton Of an attorney for each county,
but the title of it as well as certain
sections in it, besides amendments to
it and a collateral act passed in 1886
would indicate, in the absence of any
unequivocal construction of the stat.
ute, that no such absurd construction
was ever contemplated or intended by
any body Of law makers-that each
county is not entitled to it's. attorney.
In the original law creating the of:
flee, there is no doubt Of its applica-
ton; he was a district officer with
power to appoint deputies.
By the act of 1883, (chap. 43), it
was provided that a district attorney
shall be elected in each county organ.
lied for judicial purposes, in 1884, and
binenially thereafter. By section 8
Of said act, "each district attorney
shall when: requested by any rnagis-
trate of his county, appear on behalf
of the territory before any such mag
istrate * Il x and prosecute all
complaints made in behalf of the ter
ritory'' and by section 4, "ahM with
out fee, give opinions and advice to
the board. of county commissioners
and other civil officers, Of their respec.
the counties. Section Z, chapter 60
Of the laws of 1885, creating county
boards Of health, reads as. follows:
At the first meeting of said territorial
board Of health, they shall appoint two per-
sons from each county, residents thereof,
who with the district attorney of the county
from which they are appointed, shall consti.
tute a county board Of health for such coun-
ty. The district attorney shall be the pres
ident Of such county board of health. So.
Provision is also made for meeting
at the county seats IN. their ,respeeti;ue
counties as often as once in every three
smonths. r..
The Sixth subdivision of the sixth ju-
dicial district comprises the counties of
Benson, Rolette, Bottineau, McHen.
~, Ward, Eddy, Desmet and Wynn:
they contained a population in June,
1885, Of 6273; at present, judging
from the. vote cast in November last,
approximately. 10000. There are four
justices of the peace, to each county
organized, which would make "a in
this subdivision, DeSmet and Wynn
being unorganized. :. ::r2*'|
Can it for mi moment be supposed,
that the legislature intended that the
district attorney for, Benson comfy
appear before each one of the
four magistrates in each of the six
counties, to prosecute, asspro1ided by
law, distant it" may be more than
100 miles,<and if so,;. without pay?-l
for no provision: is made that; he shall
give his time and services gratuitous-
any more than he should in the
of advice and opinions fol. the
Of the county commissioner,
Notwithstanding the language Of the
18th section of the act above quoted. +
Again, IS it reasonable to" suppose,
that when a case came up necessitat-
advice fr ON a district attorney,
hat the law makers contemplated
100 miles to Minnewaukan to
get the opinion Of Benson Countys
attorney, thereby causing the
expense Of a special meetingsof the
board to take action upon the rend.
Of sucth~ opinion il Or advice? . ri
These and many other questions nat
irally suggest themselves to show,
that, while our legislative solons might
not have been overly wise, they were
lot guilty Of such gross stupidity and
absurdity q Is assumedthey were I
making only one district attorney !,